However, the nation as a whole could only be described as appearing calm on the surface, but underneath there lied a repressed people who yearned to express themselves and be free. This facet of Czech life is best described in Milan Kundera’s novel The Unbearable Lightness of Being, where he describes the communist masters of “kitsch”, or appearances. The appearance of everything of the populace being accepting of communist rule was on aspect that allowed them to stay in power for such a long time. All the people needed was the slightest bit of hope given by a small group of activist to awake them from their subdued state.

There remains much resentment today in the Czech Republic over the era of communist rule. The scars of the past are readily visible in Prague today. When one sees the sky line of the ancient city, there are two things that stand out, one is the TV tower built during the communist era that many citizens describe as a horrible mark on an otherwise perfect panoramic image. The other is a red pole, in the place of a demolished statue of Stalin, which serves as a reminder of the tragedies and horrors that occurred during the communist era. This terrible era will forever be ingrained on the hearts and minds of the Czech people.